Homegardens and the future of food and nutrition security in southwest Uganda

Whitney, Cory; Tabuti, John R. S.; Hensel, Oliver; Yeh, Ching-Hua; Gebauer, Jens; Luedeling, Eike

doi:10.1016/j.agsy.2017.03.009

Cited by 31 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 31 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The plan consequently seeks to replace subsistence farms with large‐scale commercial agriculture. However, our model results support past studies showing that large‐scale farms may not perform as well as traditional small‐scale farms in supplying diverse and nutritious diets (Kabunga et al, ; Whitney et al, ). Increasing food supply may not necessarily result in less hunger or MND in Uganda (Whitney et al, ).…”

Section: Probabilistic Decision Modeling In Practicesupporting

confidence: 83%

“…However, our model results support past studies showing that large‐scale farms may not perform as well as traditional small‐scale farms in supplying diverse and nutritious diets (Kabunga et al, ; Whitney et al, ). Increasing food supply may not necessarily result in less hunger or MND in Uganda (Whitney et al, ). For example, Kabunga et al () showed that in rural smallholder households across Uganda, production of fruit and vegetables was related to more diverse dietary intakes, greater household food security and lower levels of anemia.…”

Section: Probabilistic Decision Modeling In Practicesupporting

confidence: 83%

“…Probabilistic sensitivity analysis and Value of Information (VoI) procedures can be used to determine whether additional information on certain input variables in the BN model could increase confidence about the emerging decision recommendation (Constantinou et al, ). Results can be used for prioritizing knowledge gaps that should most urgently be narrowed in order to improve certainty about the decision (Constantinou et al, ; Whitney et al, ). More follow‐up measurements and disaggregation of any identified variables can help inform the design and prioritization of future research and provide guidance about the best pathways for implementing the current decision.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Probabilistic Decision Tools for Determining Impacts of Agricultural Development Policy on Household Nutrition

et al. 2018

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Governments around the world have agreed to end hunger and food insecurity and to improve global nutrition, largely through changes to agriculture and food systems. However, they are faced with a lot of uncertainty when making policy decisions, since any agricultural changes will influence social and biophysical systems, which could yield either positive or negative nutrition outcomes. We outline a holistic probability modeling approach with Bayesian Network (BN) models for nutritional impacts resulting from agricultural development policy. The approach includes the elicitation of expert knowledge for impact model development, including sensitivity analysis and value of information calculations. It aims at a generalizable methodology that can be applied in a wide range of contexts. To showcase this approach, we develop an impact model of Vision 2040, Uganda's development strategy, which, among other objectives, seeks to transform the country's agricultural landscape from traditional systems to large‐scale commercial agriculture. Model results suggest that Vision 2040 is likely to have negative outcomes for the rural livelihoods it intends to support; it may have no appreciable influence on household hunger but, by influencing preferences for and access to quality nutritional foods, may increase the prevalence of micronutrient deficiency. The results highlight the trade‐offs that must be negotiated when making decisions regarding agriculture for nutrition, and the capacity of BNs to make these trade‐offs explicit. The work illustrates the value of BNs for supporting evidence‐based agricultural development decisions.

show abstract

Section: Probabilistic Decision Modeling In Practicesupporting

confidence: 83%

Section: Probabilistic Decision Modeling In Practicesupporting

confidence: 83%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Probabilistic Decision Tools for Determining Impacts of Agricultural Development Policy on Household Nutrition

et al. 2018

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Homegardens are recognized as a source of high vegetable germplasm diversity, which can be essential to overcome food-security problems, such as loss of food sources from rapidly spreading diseases associated with homogenous germplasm in the industrial agriculture system [11][12][13]. Homegardens possess many attributes to make economic, social, and ecological contributions to sustainability.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

In-situ Conservation of Traditional Vegetable Diversity in Wa Homegardens in Southwestern Yunnan, China

Hua

Hill

Xue

et al. 2021

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Homegardens are recognized as in-situ conservation sources of germplasm diversity to overcome homogenous germplasm problems in the industrial agriculture system; it is crucial to understand how smallholders manage their homegardens to maintain traditional genetic resources. Wa is a long-dwelling ethnic group living mainly in southwest Yunnan, China. Traditional vegetables in homegardens management are still central to farmers’ livelihoods in Wa villages. We surveyed traditional vegetables in Wa homegardens and analyzed the factors conserving traditional vegetables in the homegardens management. Methods: The methods used in this work included semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, and field surveys. A total of 60 households through purposive sampling in three townships, 6 villages were surveyed. We documented ethnobotanical information on local name, edible methods, edible parts of traditional vegetables maintained in Wa homegardens. Plant species cultivated in Wa homegardens were identified according to Flora of China.Results: Fifty-five traditional vegetable varieties and 36 hybrid vegetable varieties in the homegardens were recorded. Among all the villages, 23 ± 6 (average ± S.D.) traditional vegetable varieties per homegarden and 9 ± 3 (average ± S.D.) introduced vegetable varieties per homegarden were recorded. 78% of households choose to store the local seeds themselves, with a further 9% of households’ seed supplies coming from neighbors and relatives, other 13% of households choose to purchase local seeds in the markets. In 83% of families, the female head holds the main responsibility for decision making for traditional vegetables planted in homegardens; in 10% of families were male head household to take responsibility for decision-making, and a small percentage which is 2% is determined by the elderly. 5% of families will make decisions jointly between both male and female household heads.Conclusions: This study demonstrated that rich traditional germplasm diversity is harbored in the Wa homegardens because of Wa communities’ unique culture and traditional knowledge, which is practiced daily using homegrown food plants. Local vegetable seed saving and sharing systems can help maintain the germplasm diversity in the Wa community’s homegardens. Wa homegardens can be a practical solution to protect the traditional germplasm diversity and maintain a lifestyle with traditional culture.

show abstract

“…Frequently used techniques include Monte Carlo sampling (O'Hagan 2012; Luedeling et al 2015;Sain et al 2017) and Bayesian Networks (Whitney et al 2018). Monte Carlo simulations have been employed to address field variability and parameter uncertainties to assess the cost-benefit profile of climate-smart agriculture options (Sain et al 2017), to predict the range of yield benefits when adopting conservation agriculture practices (Rosenstock et al 2014), and to project the impact of agricultural development policies on household nutrition (Whitney et al 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Decision analysis of agroforestry options reveals adoption risks for resource-poor farmers

Luedeling

Whitney

2020

Agron. Sustain. Dev.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Agroforestry interventions have the potential to benefit the livelihoods of farmers and communities worldwide. However, given the high system complexity, the long-term benefits of agroforestry are difficult to anticipate. This study aimed to integrate uncertainty into long-term performance projections for agroforestry interventions in the highlands of Northwest Vietnam. We applied decision analysis and probabilistic modeling approaches to produce economic ex-ante assessments for seven agroforestry options (intercropping of maize, forage grass, or coffee with tea, nut, fruit, and timber trees) promoted in the region. Our results indicate that farmers likely prefer annual monocultures due to the relatively early incomes and short time-lag on returns. However, the results also show that annual profits from monocrops can be expected to decrease over time, due mainly to unsustainable soil use. Agroforestry systems, on the other hand, return substantial profits in the long term, but they also incur high establishment and maintenance costs and can generate net losses in the first few years. Initial financial incentives to compensate for these losses may help in promoting agroforestry adoption in the region. Uncertainties related to farmers’ time preference, crop yields, and crop prices appeared to have the greatest influence on whether monocropping or agroforestry emerged as the preferable option. Narrowing these key knowledge gaps may offer additional clarity on farmers’ optimal course of action and provide guidance for agencies promoting agroforestry interventions in Vietnam and elsewhere. Our model produced a set of plausible ranges for net present values and highlighted critical variables, more clarity on which would support decision-making under uncertainty. Our innovative research approach proved effective in providing forecasts of uncertain outcomes and can be useful for informing similar development interventions in other contexts.

show abstract

Homegardens and the future of food and nutrition security in southwest Uganda

Cited by 31 publications

References 31 publications

Probabilistic Decision Tools for Determining Impacts of Agricultural Development Policy on Household Nutrition

Probabilistic Decision Tools for Determining Impacts of Agricultural Development Policy on Household Nutrition

In-situ Conservation of Traditional Vegetable Diversity in Wa Homegardens in Southwestern Yunnan, China

Decision analysis of agroforestry options reveals adoption risks for resource-poor farmers

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About